Switching device



1811.16, 1940. 'w ELLWQOD r AL 2,187,115

SWITCHING DEVICE Filed March 2,' 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 n48. ELL W /NVENTO;?:- Hf HOLDEN WTMXT T' ATTO/W V FIG.

Jan. 16, 1940- w. B. ELLWOOD El AL 2,137,115

SWITCHING DEVICE Filed March 2, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 W8. ELLWOOD WHIHOLDEN Patented Jan. 16, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE- SWITCHING DEVICE Application March 2, 1939, Serial No. 259,314

8 Claims.

\ have'been used in which no moving parts except the contacts at cross-points are employed. Means have been provided for establishing circuit connections at intersecting points in which a set of relays, each having two windings, are. arranged in horizontal and vertical. rows. Two groups of circuits for these relays may be provided. Each circuit in one group includes one of the windings on a row of relays arranged in a horizontal direction and each circuit in the other group includes the other windings of a row of relays arranged in a vertical direction. In the telegraph art, for example, such circuits have been used for selecting and operating a relay at an intersecting point over horizontally and vertically connected windings toactuate keys for selecting characters for printing. Similar systems have also been used in so-called all-relay automatic art for establishing telephone connections.

This invention relates to switching devices of the type employing the coordinate principle in which no moving parts except the contacts at cross-points are employed to establish connections and a feature of the invention is to arrange two groups of long coils to cross each other to form parallelepipedal apertures at each point where a coil of one group crosses a coil of the other group and an air-tight vessel in each aperture containing electromagnetically responsive circuit closing contacts, the contacts in a par- .ticular vessel being operated to close a circuit connection when a corresponding coil of one group and a. corresponding coil of the other group are energized. The contact devices and coils may be so constructed and the energizing current may be so adjusted that a connection will be maintained between the contacts in a vessel after one of these coils is deenergized and'the energization of the other coil is reduced to as low as fifty 'per cent of its original energizing value. These elements and energizing currentsmay be further adapted so that when a coil is energized to this lower percentage of its full energizing value-any of the contact elements subjected to the effect of this lower energization when subjected to the full energization of another coil surrounding any of said contact elements, connections will not be effected at the cross-points of said coils. Coordinate switch contact operations may therefore be performed by this arrangement inthe same manner as in standard mechanically operated cross-bar switches.

Another feature of the invention is the provision of a shield structure for the coils to'prevent' the flux from aflecting contact elements in the neighborhood of the contact elements actuated by two coils crossing each other.

This invention has been illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which i Fig. 1 shows in perspective and partly in crosssection, a mechanical structure embodying the applicants invention.v

Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic representation of this invention as illustrated in Fig. 1 showing the arrangementof the shield in relation to the coils.

Fig. 3 discloses one of the air-tight vessels containingcontact elements for insertion at the cross-points of the switch structure shown in Fig. l, and,

Fig. 4 shows in diagrammatic form the arrangement of the coils with the contact elements at the cross-point indicated.

Referring now to the drawings and particularly to Fig. 1 and Fig. 3, a series of air-tight vessels are arranged to be surrounded 'by coils. These air-tight vessels may be of the type disclosed in the copending application of W. B. Ellwood, Serial No. 198,629, filed'March 29, 1938, and may consist of terminals 2 and 3 to which are respectively connected contact springs 4 and 5 of ma etic material preferably pure iron as employed in the above-mentioned copending application. When vessels of this kind are surrounded by windings and said windings are energized, connection between the contacts 4 and 5 may be made as at the point 6 by magnetic flux acting on these pure iron contacts. These air-tight vessels may be inserted through apertures such as, Ni, ii and I! in parallel plates l3, l4 and ll: of magnetic material in the structure shown in Fig. 1. Between the plates 83 and M are inserted windings such row of three vessels. These coils may be wound on specially formed spools of insulation material terial. The whole shield structure is held together,

such as the type illustrated at in cross-section of Fig.1. The three plates I3, l4 and I5 form part of a shield structure including also an upper plate 21 and a lower plate 28 of magnetic maby bolts such as 29, 30, 3| and 32. Thus the three horizontal coils l6, l1 and I8 and the three vertical coils 20, 2| and 22 form parallelepipedal openings at their cross-points, each of which contains one or more vessels having electromagnetic contact elements.

When one of the horizontal windings and one of the vertical windings are energized, magnetic flux will be producedat the point where they cross to operate the contacts of the corresponding 28 prevents the flux from eifecting the contacts in any other vessel surrounding the one in which the contacts have been operated. The eflects of these current values and magnetic flux may also be such that if, for example, a connection has been made through the vessel at the cross-point 33 of windings l6 and 22 and the value otthe original current in winding l6 remains at 50 per cent and then coil 2| is energized to its full energization, the contacts in the vessel 32 will not be operated as the energization for this vessel only amounts to 75 per cent of the full value. On the other hand if in addition to the energization of coil 2|, coil I is also energized, then the contacts oi the vessel 35 will be operated. The energization of coil 2| may then be discontinued and the value of the energization oi the coil I! may be reduced to per cent to maintain the contacts in vessel 35 energized.

Fig. 2' illustrates in diagrammatic form how the shielding effect may be produced. The electromagnetic flux produced, for example, bythe windings 31 and 38 causes the operation of the contacts in vessel 39, but the magnetic lines 01' force that" may extend outside of the area in which this vessel 39 is located will be shunted through the shield structure. This magnetic flux may extend through the side members l3, M and I5 and the upper member 21 and lower members 28. In this particular case this flux will naturally for example, .for establishing connections. It is assumed that, for example, the upper contacts Teach, horizontal row are connected together to the telephone line and the lower contacts, in each vertical row ot 'cont93cts are connected together to another telephone line. By energizing for example the horizontal winding 45 and the vertical winding 46, a connection may be established for the first left-hand vertical line It and the upper horizontal line 49 over the contacts at the crosspoint 50. In this arrangement, therefore, connections may be established from any one of ten subscribers lines in one group to any one of ten subscribers lines in any other group. It is evident that while only a single line connection has been shown for each cross-point, it should be understood that any other circuit arrangements may be employed for establishing any other type of connections ,at these various cross- .vessels enclosing contacts may be provided for establishing such connections.

What is claimed is:

l. A switching device comprising two groups of long narrow coils arranged to cross each other to form a parallelepipedal aperture at each point where a coil of one group crosses a coil of the other group, a set of contacts of magnetic material in each of said apertures, each set operative in response to electromagnetic flux produced by the energization of the two coils surroundin said set of contacts, and magnetic shields surrounding said two groups of coils for limiting the electromagnetic flux produced by the energization of the two coils surrounding said set of contacts to aflectonly said set of contacts.

2. A switching device comprising two groups oiv elongated coils arranged to cross each other to form an aperture at each point where a coil of one group croses the coil 01' the other group, an air-tight vessel in eachv of said apertures containing circuit closing. contacts operative in responsethe coils surrounding the associated vessel are energized, and a common magnetic shield for all A of said coils for limiting the operative action to the electromagnetically responsive circuit closing contacts in the air-tight vessel associated with the energized coils.

4. A switching device comprising two groups of long narrow coils arranged to cross each other to form parallelepipedal apertures at each point where a coil of one group crosses a coil of the other group, an air-tight vessel in each of said apertures containing electromagneticallyv responsive circuit closing contacts operative when both coils surrounding the associated vessel are energized and maintained operative after one of the coils is deenergized, and a common magnetic shield for all of said coils for limiting the operative action to the electromagnetically responsive circuit closing contacts in the air-tight vessel associated with the energized coils,

5. A switching device comprising two groups of elongated coils arranged to cross each other to form an aperture at each point where a coil for one group crosses a coil of the other group, an

air-tight vessel in each olaaid apertures containing electromagnetically responsive circuit closing contacts operative when both coils surrounding the associated vessel areenergized and maintained operative after one oi said coils is deenergized and the energization of the other coil is reduced within certain limits, and a common magnetic shield for all oi said coils.

6. A switching device comprising two groups of 1 elongated coils arranged to cross each other to form an aperture at each point where a coil of one group crosses a coil or the other group, means for energizing said coils. an air-tight vessel in each 01' said apertures containing electromagnetically responsive circuit closing contacts operative when both coils surrounding the associated vessel are energized and maintained operative after one of said coils is deenergized and the current through the other coil is reduced within 50 per cent of its full energizing value, and a common magnetic shield for all of said coils.

7. A switching device comprising one group of horizontally located long narrow coils, and another group of vertically located long narrow 5 coils arranged so that the coils of one group cross the coils of the other group to form an aperture at each point where a horizontal coil'crosses a vertical coil, an air-tight vessel in each aperture containing electromagnetically responsive circuit closing contacts operative when the horizontal and vertical coils surrounding the associated vessel are .ztully energized and maintained operative if the horizontal coil is deenerergized and the vertical coil is partly deenergized, the remaining partial energization of said vertical coil being tacts in the vessel surroimded by a fully energized horizontal coil and a fully energized vertical coil. l0

8. A switching device one group or horizon located coils, and another group of verticall located coils arranged so that the coils of one group cross the coils oi the other group to form a parallelepipedal aperture at 15 each point where a horizontal coil crosses a vertical coil, an air-tight vessel in each aperture containing electromagnetically responsive circuit closing contacts operative when both of the coils surrounding the associated vessel are fully energized and maintained operative it one coil is energized below per cent oi! its full energization and the other coil is fully energized, a partition of magnetic material between the horizontal coils and the vertical coils, and a housing of a magnetic material surrounding two horizontal and two vertical outer sides of said two groups of coils, said partition and housing being-electromagneticaily connected to limit the operative action to the electromagnetically responsive circult closing contacts in an air-tight vessel when the horizontal coil and vertical coil surrounding said vessel are fully energized.

.' WALTER B. ELLWOOD.

WILLIAM H. '1'. mm. 

